Sunday, February 3, 2008

A Little Birdy Told Me

Finally, updating my living room and dining room has come to the art collecting segment... maybe I rushed ahead a bit -- there is still a chair to upholster and a cabinet to refinish, lamps to select. But art is the fun part and, trust me, I could use a little fun.


Sadly, my favorite, most reliable antique mall recently closed. It was one of those monster malls with row upon row, booth after booth, fine antiques mingling with middle-of-the-road junk. I loved it and then, like an errant boyfriend, just when you thought it would be there always, it wasn't. It was gone. Ahhhh me.


Forlorn and woebegone, what was I to do? Wander into every antique and thrift shop in the city, to beat the bushes for a few integral pieces of art? Mighty inefficient and haphazard if you ask me. But then, quite by chance, I overheard two men chatting... about a new antique mall. The minute I became aware of what they were talking about I began eavesdropping in earnest. What new antique mall? Where? How would I find it? Shhhhhhhh...

It's on Route 4, they said. (Oh, Bully, Route 4 is one of those busy thoroughfares with every fast food restaurant, department store and chain shop known nationwide crammed within a five mile lenghth.) Those were the only directions I had. No specifics, not even a name for the place... How would I find it?


About two miles off the highway, up Route 4, as I was beginning to wonder... there was the sign, big as life: Antique Mall. Hooray!!!!.

The wonderful thing about an antique mall, if you ask me, is the whole conglomeration of antiques in one place. If I am looking for bowls or tables or candle sticks, it is a sure bet, at an antique mall I will find not one but fifty. I can choose this or that, discard a piece that doesn't quite go....


And so it was with the art. I started looking for pieces that just "grabbed me"... and what I began to notice were bird prints... Pretty, pretty bird prints. I didn't mean to zero in on these pretty birds... they just caught my eye and wouldn't let me loose. I got several bird prints that I think will make a nice grouping. (Another grouping I got was of children, but we'll look at them another day -- today I wanted to show you these lovely birds. Aren't they nice?)

And as it happens only recently I got a mini-yard-long from Francie's Scented Cottage that features a length of birds perched on a wire. They are too too cute. Don't you think? (Even with a fuzzy picture those little birds are unbearably sweet.)


Finding the new antique mall was a mightily entertaining treasure hunt. Finding all these dear birdy prints were the bonus nuggets of gold.

So I am wondering, are the antique malls in your area fairing well... or are they dying on the vine? And when you go antiquing what do you most like to find?

11 comments:

Jean said...

Your room is looking beautiful! I love the bird prints!Can't wait to see it all put together!

Mary Anne said...

Wow! You are definately a hard worker!!! Are you doing EVERYTHING yourself?!? I can't wait to see the finished room ! .....and those birdie prints are so pretty.

As far as antique malls go .... my friend has a combination quilt shop /antique mall. It's a big 2 story building where her husband and his dad have their office in part of the upstairs (nothing to do with the quilt shop or antique biz --- commodities, I think). Anyhow, the antique vendors rent space in the bldg from my friend, whose quilt shop is in the front part of the downstairs, .... but she has 2 big rooms in the back of the 1st floor for classroom space and her longarm quilt machine ...... ANYHOW, she's now selling the business (the bldg and the quilt vendor space) to find a smaller bldg for just her quilt shop and office space for her hubby -- I'm not sure why she doesn't want to deal with the antique vendors any more -- or maybe just wants a smaller bldg and smaller mortgage?

Anyway, get back to work on that room!! ...but when you need a break, come for a blog visit...I'm having a Valentine give away!

Vallen said...

Where there used to be tons there are none. We have to go quite some distance to find a good antique mall. I love strolling through an antique mall. Miss them. Alot.

Francie...The Scented Cottage Studio said...

Well there aren't any within 70 miles of us. But I do know that many many of them "up Nawth" where I used to live have closed.

You found some wonderful bird prints !!!

(())

kari and kijsa said...

Lovely prints! We have some wonderful 'junk-tique' stores in our historic downtown...a great hunting ground for treasures!

blessings,
kari & kijsa

PAT said...

In my opinion, the best antique malls in Missouri are south of Springfield. A good 5 hour drive for us. I love going there. They seem to be fairing well. There are several, all together in or near the same location.

We don't see as many antique shops near us, like we used too. I love the malls! You're right about them. They're great!

Your birds are beautiful!
Pat

Angie said...

Antique malls can be quite dangerous and fun! So glad you were able to find another one.

I've tagged you tl tell 7 wierd things about yourself. Here are the rules:

Once you are tagged, link back to the person that tagged you.
2. Post THE RULES on your blog.
3.Post 7 weird or random facts about yourself on your blog.
4. Tag 7 people and link to them.
5. Comment on their blog to let them know they have been tagged.


Angie

Enzie Shahmiri said...

I have found your blog through My One World - One Heart Giveaway and wanted to invite you to visit my blog.

I am having a give away of an original pen and ink drawing for my One World-One Heart Give Away

Anonymous said...

We still have a few good antique malls here in town ~ but mere 19 miles away is an 'antique'town~ oh yes the town is old ~ but it has turned into rows of antique stores. I don't get there as often as I would like~ but I know it's there and treasures are waiting.~S

Lisa said...

I just found your blog - and love it! I agree with Pat that there are fabulous antique malls in the Nixa/Ozark area of Missouri. My parents-in-law moved there from KC metro, upon retirement. My hubby relocated us to northwestern Vermont (for his dream job about 4 years ago) and there are zero antique malls here. On the drive out here, we saw HUGE antique malls in the Springfield, OH area, but we couldn't even stop to check them out - darn it!

Betty said...

I love your bird prints. We have a lot of antique malls here. One did recently close but it was by far the worst of them. I look for buttons and sewing things, porcelains with roses, linens and whatever catches my eye.